Guilty plea in weapons plot

An Indonesian man is the last of four arrested for illegal exportation

The last person in a group of four men arrested in Honolulu pleaded guilty yesterday to a plot that federal authorities say sought to illegally export hundreds of handguns, submachine guns, Sidewinder missiles and aircraft radar equipment to Indonesia.

Under a plea deal in federal court in Detroit, Hadianto Djoko Djuliarso, 41, of Indonesia faces up to seven years and three months in prison for money laundering and conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Djuliarso, a businessman who owned or was associated with four businesses in Indonesia and Singapore, conspired with 46-year-old Ibrahim Bin Amran of Singapore, also associated with the same businesses, to export the military articles without obtaining the proper licenses, according to court papers.

Last April, the two men were arrested in Honolulu along with Ignatius Ferdinandus Soeharli, 49, of Indonesia and David Beecroft, 44, of the United Kingdom after arriving to inspect and complete the purchase of about $600,000 worth of aircraft radar and guidance equipment, according to the original indictment.

According to court papers, the plot began in March 2005 when an e-mail from Djuliarso's company was sent to an unnamed U.S. business asking about the purchase of military aircraft equipment for export to Indonesia.

ASSOCIATED PRESS / 1999
In this U.S. Navy photo, a Sidewinder missile is loaded on the wing of a jet fighter. Sidewinders were among the weapons involved in a recent illegal arms exportation case.

The following summer, an e-mail connected to Amran and sent to a company in the U.S. asked about the price of 225 Sidewinder missiles, court papers said.

Djuliarso and Amran later traveled to Detroit to set up a deal with an unnamed company to purchase the radar equipment and other military items without a federal license, according to court papers.

During the meeting, the two men also allegedly inquired about the cost of 400 MP-5 submachine guns and an undisclosed number of handguns. The two allegedly began transferring money from Singapore and Indonesia to a bank account in eastern Michigan for the radar equipment.

Court papers said in January that Amran requested the price from a company in the U.S. for more than 800 submachine guns and 800 handguns.

Amran pleaded guilty in December to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and money laundering. Under the plea deal, he faces up to seven years and three months in prison and a fine of up to $125,000.

About a week ago, Soeharli pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act and, under the plea deal, faces up to four years and eight months in prison. He also faces a fine of up to $100,000.

Djuliarso, Soeharli and Amran await their sentencing dates.

Djuliarso also agreed to forfeit the approximately $600,000 seized in the case.

Beecroft pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act in October. He was sentenced in December to eight months in prison and will be deported after his release.